The sun dipped below the jagged western ridges, painting the fog around Ghost-Sword Peak in hues of bruised purple and crimson.
Adam sat cross-legged on the stone platform outside his hall, his breathing steady, his consciousness immersed in the newly comprehended Ten-Thousand Blade Dominion. Around his body, a microscopic, razor-thin film of silver light vibrated silently, slicing through the ambient mountain air with precision.
BOOM!
The peaceful atmosphere shattered as a heavy golden spirit cruiser ripped through the mountain’s outer fog barrier and descended over the stone courtyard.
The ship’s hull bore the dark iron emblem of two crossed executioner blades, the symbol of the Great Void Sect’s Law Enforcement Hall.
Before the cruiser’s shadow had settled, five figures leapt from the deck and slammed onto the stone floor, kicking up a violent dust storm.
At the front stood Senior Brother Ye, a tall youth with sharp, hawk-like features, dressed in gold-embroidered core-disciple robes. His face was twisted with cold rage, his hand resting on the hilt of a high-grade spirit sword, and he carried the pressure of a Mid Foundation Establishment cultivator. Beside him stood Gu Long, his chest wrapped in thick, blood-soaked bandages, pointing a trembling, hate-filled finger at Adam.
Behind them came three men in dark iron armor from the Law Enforcement Hall: two officers, and Elder Zhao, a 3rd-Layer Foundation Establishment elder with a long scar across his nose. All three radiated the heavy, suffocating pressure of Foundation Establishment masters.
"Elder Zhao! That’s him!" Gu Long shrieked, his voice cracking with hysteria. "That’s the arrogant wild dog who ignored sect rules, destroyed my broadsword, and crippled my meridians right here on the peak!"
Elder Zhao stepped forward and pulled a heavy dark-iron chain covered in suppression runes from his belt.
"Adam Hale!" Elder Zhao’s voice boomed across the summit like thunder, carrying cold authority. "You are accused of assaulting a fellow disciple, destroying sect property, and projecting an unauthorized sword domain within the Great Void Sect! Surrender your weapons, kneel, and step into the suppression chains peacefully!"
Senior Brother Ye stepped up beside him, a cold, triumphant sneer curling his lips.
"Rogue trash," Ye said softly, his voice full of cruel satisfaction. "You thought a rare talent score would let you act without restraint on Ghost-Sword Peak? I told Gu Long this peak belonged to my faction. Since you refused to sign the transfer scroll, you’ll spend the next fifty years breaking spirit stones in the Black-Frost Mines!"
Adam didn’t move. He didn’t rise from his stone mat or reach for a weapon. He simply opened his eyes, two dark, emotionless pools of starlight looking past Senior Brother Ye and straight into the eyes of Elder Zhao.
"Law Enforcement Hall," Adam said quietly, his voice cutting through the heavy pressure like a calm stream. "Do you enforce the rules of the Sect Master, or do you act as the personal dogs of Senior Brother Ye’s family?"
Elder Zhao’s eyes flashed with anger. "Arrogant brat! Challenging the integrity of the Law Enforcement Hall is an additional felony! Officers, break his knees and bind him!"
The two officers surged forward, their heavy iron boots shattering the stone floor. Twin arcs of suppression Qi erupted from their hands and turned into two giant, translucent blue palms that reached out to crush Adam’s shoulders.
Senior Brother Ye folded his arms, waiting to see Adam brought to his knees in humiliation.
Adam sighed softly.
’Insects never learn until they see the sky fall.’
He didn’t open his Sword Field. Instead, he reached into his wide blue sleeve, withdrew a single object, and tossed it into the air above his head.
FLASH!
A brilliant dark-purple light erupted from the palm-sized token.
An ancient, suffocating pressure, a trace of the Sect Master’s own, far beyond Foundation Establishment and beyond even a standard Golden Core elder, flooded the entire summit.
The dark-purple light coalesced into a massive, three-hundred-foot illusory character suspended above Ghost-Sword Peak: DECREE.
BANG! BANG!
The two blue Qi palms reaching for Adam were vaporized into white mist.
The sheer authority of the Decree Token slammed into the two officers like a falling meteor. Their iron armor groaned, and both men were forced to their knees, their boots sinking four inches into the solid granite.
"WHAT?!" Elder Zhao’s scar turned bright red. He stumbled back three steps, staring up at the floating purple rune with wide, terror-stricken eyes. "The... the Sect Master’s Decree Token?!"
Senior Brother Ye’s sneer froze. His blood ran cold, his jaw hanging open in shock. "The Sect Master... gave him the Independent Decree Token?! Impossible! That token hasn’t been issued in over two hundred years!"
Adam slowly rose from his meditation stone, his blue robes fluttering in the purple light. He walked down the stone steps and stopped ten paces from the kneeling officers and the trembling Senior Brother Ye.
"According to Great Void Sect Law, Chapter One, Article Three," Adam quoted smoothly, his tone icy cold. "The holder of a Decree Token holds rank equivalent to an Outer-Sect Elder. Independent peak operations are governed solely by the Sect Master’s decree. Any unauthorized force that seizes an Independent Peak or arrests its holder without a written decree from the Grand Council is guilty of... treason."
He looked straight into Elder Zhao’s pale face.
"Elder Zhao," Adam asked softly. "Do you have the Grand Council’s written decree? Or did you bring suppression chains to arrest a rank-holder of this sect on the personal request of an inner-sect disciple?"
Elder Zhao’s forehead broke out in cold sweat.
In the Great Void Sect, arresting a Decree Token holder without higher authorization was a crime punishable by death and soul destruction. He had come along only because Ye’s grandfather was an influential inner-sect elder, assuming Adam was an unprotected rogue kid who had gotten lucky during the entrance exam.
"I... I..." Elder Zhao’s voice trembled. He dropped to his knees and pressed his palms and forehead against the cold stone. "Elder Hale! Forgive us! We were misled by false reports from Gu Long and Disciple Ye! We did not know you held the Decree Token!"
"Elder Zhao?!" Senior Brother Ye gasped, his face as pale as a corpse. "You’re bowing to this trash?!"
"SILENCE, YOU FOOL!" Elder Zhao screamed, whipping around to glare at Ye with murderous rage. "You brought us here under false pretenses to assault a Decree Token holder! If Elder Hale reports this to the Zenith Sanctuary, our entire lineage will be executed!"
Gu Long, sitting on the ground behind them, fainted on the spot from sheer terror.
Senior Brother Ye stood frozen, his hand trembling on his sword hilt. He looked at Adam, the cold, unreadable young man standing beneath the glowing purple rune, and realized for the first time that he wasn’t dealing with a lucky newcomer. He was looking at a predator who had lured them straight into a trap.
"Elder Hale," Elder Zhao stammered, his head still pressed to the dirt. "How would you like the Law Enforcement Hall to handle this matter?"
Adam looked down at the kneeling elder, a small, dark smile touching the corners of his lips.
"Your officers can go," Adam said calmly. "Senior Brother Ye and Gu Long will compensate Ghost-Sword Peak for the damage to my courtyard floor with three thousand low-tier spirit stones and ten boxes of Mid-Tier Spirit-Nourishing Herbs within twenty-four hours."
"Three thousand spirit stones?!" Senior Brother Ye choked out, his heart bleeding. That was his entire cultivation allowance for a year.
"If the payment is late by one second," Adam added, his eyes flashing with silver sword light, "I will personally visit your grandfather’s peak to collect the interest."
"It will be paid! It will be paid within twelve hours, Elder!" Elder Zhao shouted frantically, grabbing Senior Brother Ye by the collar and dragging him backward toward the golden cruiser like a panicked dog. "We take our leave!"
Within thirty seconds, the golden cruiser fired its light engine at full output and fled Ghost-Sword Peak as if escaping the gates of hell.
The peak returned to quiet solitude.
Adam raised his hand and recalled the Decree Token into his sleeve. The dark-purple light faded, leaving only the cool mountain wind sweeping through the trees.
[Notice: Local conflict resolved using Strategic Asset (Decree Token).]
[Reputation Metrics Updated: Ghost-Sword Peak established as a Restricted Danger Zone within the Great Void Sect.]
Adam turned back toward his hall, a cold, calculating glint in his eyes.
"Three thousand spirit stones and ten boxes of mid-tier herbs," Adam murmured, pulling his hood forward. "A decent starting capital for the pavilion I’m going to build. The Void-Star Pavilion."